Chicken and Vegetable Pie

, from Issue #66. August, 2016
Photography by Jessie Casson.
Chicken and Vegetable Pie

This is my favourite chicken pie recipe as everything just gets mixed together, popped into the dish and topped with pastry. The result is a gorgeous golden, crispy-topped pie with a tender, juicy filling. 

Serves: 4

INGREDIENTS

2 pre-rolled sheets butter puff pastry
1 egg, beaten
Filling
600 grams skinless, boneless chicken thighs
⅓ cup plain flour
2 teaspoons sea salt
2 teaspoons dried tarragon
1 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
ground black pepper
1 leek, thinly sliced

300 grams sweet potato, peeled and cut into small pieces (I used beauregard)
small handful parsley, chopped
½ cup cream
¼ cup chicken stock
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 cloves garlic, crushed

3 chicken and herb sausages, skins removed

6-cup capacity pie dish or ceramic baking dish 

METHOD

Preheat the oven to 180°C fan bake.

Filling: Slice the chicken into 2cm-wide strips.

Combine the flour, salt, tarragon, nutmeg and a good grind of pepper in a large bowl.

Add the chicken and toss until the strips are well coated.

Add the leek, sweet potato and parsley to the chicken and toss everything together.

Whisk the cream, stock, mustard and garlic together. Pour over the top and stir to combine. Break the sausages into walnut-sized pieces and gently mix through then tip everything into the pie dish.

Place one pastry sheet over the top and cut the second sheet to fit, joining the edges together with a little beaten egg. Press the edges of the pastry to seal.

Cut out decorative shapes from the remaining pastry and place over the join. Brush the top generously with beaten egg. If the pastry is soft, place the pie in the fridge to firm up. Make a few slashes in the pastry to allow the steam to escape.

Bake for about 40 minutes until the pastry is well cooked and a deep golden colour and the filling is bubbling. Allow the pie to sit for a few minutes before serving.